How to Create a Conversion Goal in PostHog

A conversion goal in PostHog isn't a special object — it's the event that represents success, tracked over time. Capture that event with posthog.capture, add it to a Trends insight as unique users, pin it to a dashboard, and you have a goal you can watch. For a conversion rate, divide it by visitors in HogQL.

Step 1: Capture the goal event

Decide what "converted" means — a completed signup, a purchase, a booked demo — and fire one stable event for it:

// when the account is created
posthog.capture('signup_completed', { plan: 'trial' })

Use a clear, lowercase name and keep it consistent. The properties (here plan) let you break the goal down later.

Step 2: Track it in the native Trends insight

In PostHog, go to Insights → Trends, set the series to signup_completed, and choose the Unique users measurement so repeat events from one person don't inflate it. Group by week for a clean trend, add a breakdown by plan if you want the split, and save it to a dashboard. That's your goal, monitored — no query required.

Step 3: Turn it into a rate with HogQL

A raw count rises and falls with traffic; a rate tells you whether the page is getting better. This HogQL computes the weekly conversion rate — goal completions over visitors:

SELECT
  toStartOfWeek(timestamp) AS week,
  countDistinctIf(person_id, event = '$pageview' AND properties.$pathname = '/') AS visitors,
  countDistinctIf(person_id, event = 'signup_completed') AS conversions,
  round(
    countDistinctIf(person_id, event = 'signup_completed')
    / countDistinctIf(person_id, event = '$pageview' AND properties.$pathname = '/') * 100,
  2) AS conversion_rate_pct
FROM events
WHERE timestamp > now() - INTERVAL 8 WEEK
GROUP BY week
ORDER BY week

Illustrative sample output:

week	visitors	conversions	conversion_rate_pct
2026-05-04	1,820	58	3.19
2026-05-11	1,910	71	3.72
2026-05-18	2,040	84	4.12

Watching the rate by week separates a real improvement from a traffic bump — the rate climbing while traffic is flat is a genuine win.

When to use an Action instead of a raw event

If a conversion can happen in more than one way — say a signup that can complete from two different forms — wrap the events in a PostHog Action, which matches multiple events or autocaptured elements under one named goal. Then point your insight at the Action. For a single clean event, the raw event is simpler.

Make the goal earn its place

A conversion goal is only useful if it drives a decision. Put the rate on a dashboard you actually look at, set an alert if PostHog can notify you on a drop, and when it dips, go find the funnel step that's leaking. If you'd like that leak found and the fix shipped as a Pull Request each week, that's what Velyr does.